Affiliate Program Sales Person

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Originally Posted by Richard

I am looking for whatever is reasonable and acceptable by both parties which will make the company money and keep the rep happy.

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Richard--

You sound like a customer on a car lot who wants to buy a car but is trying to avoid the questions of the car salesman!

You really need to decide what you want and what you can afford BEFORE you start shopping.

If you are really looking for a marketing rep, then you will need to spend some money for a good rep, like basschick said, not only on compensation but on travel and marketing expenses. You can't have a good rep without providing an expense account. Also, a good rep will already have an established rolodex and a reputation within the industry. You don't want someone who has a tarnished image and you do not want to be training a fresh face for your only rep. You will want someone who can pick up the phone and get you a dozen traffic trades on the first day from people he has done business with in the past.

Saying that you want "whatever is reasonable and acceptable" sounds like you are running for office . Decide how much you can afford and decide what you want. It would behoove you to talk with basschick or someone like her privately to determine if what you want and what you want to pay for it are realistic. We all want a new Mercedes for $1000 but that is not realistic. Decide what your budget will allow and from there you can determine if you can afford a part-time or full-time rep with the expenses.

chad, sometimes you are so articulate you are an absolute joy :)

Well personally I have never found a traffic trades worth the time, unless you pay them I guess even then its still iffy. :blush:

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Originally Posted by maxpower

Well personally I have never found a traffic trades worth the time, unless you pay them I guess even then its still iffy. :blush:

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And once again Maxpower proves his brilliance with another comment that doesn't even address the subject at hand.

[QUOTE=chadknowslaw]Richard--

You sound like a customer on a car lot who wants to buy a car but is trying to avoid the questions of the car salesman!

You really need to decide what you want and what you can afford BEFORE you start shopping.
QUOTE]

Hmmm.....not sure if those are indeed fair comments when in fact I DID say I would pay someone whatever the going rate was in a previous post. But at the same time.....I dont think I should be "pinned down" on a public forum board either. Which is why I said "whatever is reasonable". Negeotiations should be done between a company and a rep not on a board right?

So...that said....:groovy: .....if anyone is looking for a sales rep position....we are looking to hire. Thanks for everyones help. And I will say this again too.....we have never hired a sales rep for an affiliate program before. So give us some slack....we are new at this :nerd:

you can get someone from a country where the dollar has a lot more bang for around $800 a month. they won't be well known in the industry, and my experience is that usually they don't interact all that well, but they can work the boards and make sure affiliates have what they need.

for around $1500 - $2000 you can get someone with some knowledge of our industry but not well acquainted with large companies. they won't be the best but they may have some experience both as reps and in adult.

for $2000 plus percentage, you can get someone extremely motivated but this kind of motivation can lead to spam and annoy other people and companies enough to harm your reputation.

there are very few great reps in our industry - i've been offered $4500 a month and turned it down without a thought because although i don't consider myself a great rep, i have a good reputation, 10 years in adult online, more years in adult in print mags, and i know a lotta people in the biz. but that also means i have a higher earning potential.

the bottom line - if you want a really good rep, you need to pay them as much as they are earning (and someone who knows our industry well is certainly making over $3500 a month) plus offer them potential to make more. otherwise what is their incentive for taking the job?

I really appreciate your help Bass Chick. Hopefully we can find a great rep. :center:

Thank you very much, Basschick! I've always wondered about the business end of affiliate sales reps.
Steve

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Originally Posted by basschick

the bottom line - if you want a really good rep, you need to pay them as much as they are earning (and someone who knows our industry well is certainly making over $3500 a month) plus offer them potential to make more. otherwise what is their incentive for taking the job?

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True enough although, to be fair, there are several individual reps i know that do demand high salaries the problem is however, they do generate new affiliates for their program but, they dont cover their own costs.

If you are going to be paying someone $X amount each month plus expenses, you need to make it perfectly clear at the outset that after a couple of months, if they havent made their 2 months pay back, they will be dropped.

Lets not forget, there are MANY reps in the str8 side of the industry who constantly float from company to company for this very reason, they demand their high salaries but, their name alone doesnt make the program money, it isnt solely about reputation but end results.

Regards,

Lee

it's not just about reputation, and i know reps who don't cover their costs in gay and str8. when i talk about a top notch person, it isn't about their reputation - it's about performance.

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Originally Posted by Lee

True enough although, to be fair, there are several individual reps i know that do demand high salaries the problem is however, they do generate new affiliates for their program but, they dont cover their own costs.

If you are going to be paying someone $X amount each month plus expenses, you need to make it perfectly clear at the outset that after a couple of months, if they havent made their 2 months pay back, they will be dropped.

Lets not forget, there are MANY reps in the str8 side of the industry who constantly float from company to company for this very reason, they demand their high salaries but, their name alone doesnt make the program money, it isnt solely about reputation but end results.

Regards,

Lee

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Well first of all no matter what rep you get, I don't see you making any money at all. From your tour you are offering a very over exposed package that can be picked up for under $1000. That looks like all your members areas. My best advice to you, before you hire a rep, hire someone to consult with you and look at your conversions and ratios. It makes no sense hiring a rep if you are not converting and retaining.

just my opinion and the old timers know i call a spade a spade.

amen!

if you happen to be lucky enough to get a great rep and they can't make money with you, they will go elsewhere and you'll miss out.

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Originally Posted by abostonboy

Well first of all no matter what rep you get, I don't see you making any money at all. From your tour you are offering a very over exposed package that can be picked up for under $1000. That looks like all your members areas. My best advice to you, before you hire a rep, hire someone to consult with you and look at your conversions and ratios. It makes no sense hiring a rep if you are not converting and retaining.

just my opinion and the old timers know i call a spade a spade.

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Ricahrd,

I hope you are NOT offended. Just looking at what you offer. I don't see much value for $39.95. Any site with the name "Spy Boys", "Spy On Him", just reminds me of a feed that totally sucks. And after looking at your tour, its all the same fluffer content as I call it. Nothing original.

I really think you are not in the stage of hiring someone to sell a product that may not sell/retain. Tweak the item. Then sell it.

If however you do have good conversions and retention, then by all means hire a rep. And to be quite honest with you, the better your conversion, retention, the more you can pay.

I feel the time is loooong gone when we can put a site together with just leased feed and make a profit. Topbucks is an example of a company that went from cookie cutter sites to cookie cutter sites with some of the best original content on the market. They saw the need for change. ARS was on the right track with their gay reality sites, but for whatever reason, mostly $$$, stopped updating with original contenet and I believe added the "fluffer" videos.

And please don't take offense, I speak my mind. The oldies know it!